Vice President, Strategic Ventures & Impact Investing

ABOUT US

CareQuest Innovation Partners works together with our ecosystem of leading industry partners, startups, and investors, to validate and scale transformative solutions that make care more accessible, equitable, and integrated. Join us on that mission — to improve overall health, through oral health, for all!

We drive market impact through three focus areas:

SMILE Health – an accelerator program for early-stage startups.

1. Pilots – design & execution of programs to test new services and solutions in the real world.
2. Impact investing – direct investments in select pre-seed, seed, and early-to-growth-stage startups.
3. CareQuest Innovation Partners is a for-profit, mission-focused subsidiary of CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, the largest foundation focused on improving oral health.

JOB SUMMARY

As the Vice President of Strategic Ventures & Impact Investing, you will play a pivotal role in sourcing, evaluating, executing, and managing investments that align with our mission while simultaneously delivering competitive financial returns. This includes (but is not limited to) driving our impact investing strategy, portfolio monitoring and management, investor community relationships, and synergies between the SMILE accelerator program and the investment portfolio. You will also lead business development and partnership development efforts for CareQuest Innovation Partners, including investing partners (VCs, Corporate, etc.), sponsors and other industry partners for the SMILE Health accelerator program, and provider and/or payor partners for pilot programs.

This position requires a blend of strategic vision, financial acumen, and relationship-building skills to drive successful outcomes and maximize the impact of our investment portfolio and partnerships. You will work closely with the Analytics & Business Insights team (which has access to >50M lives of oral and medical claims data through CareQuest Institute) and the Innovation Programs and Services team (which manages SMILE and Pilot programs). You will also work closely with key finance, legal, and clinical leaders from CareQuest Institute.

ROLE OBJECTIVES:

• Drive an impact investment strategy that fully aligns with CareQuest Innovation Partners’ mission and goals.
• Proactively source investments through new and existing avenues, including active coordination with the SMILE accelerator program.
• Effectively manage our portfolio to deliver mission impact and financial returns.
• Engage the investor community to strengthen our partner network and raise the profile of oral health investing overall.
• Lead partnership development across Innovation Partners, including provider and payor pilot programs and accelerator partners (in addition to our investor network).
• Collaborate across CareQuest Innovation Partners, CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, and all aspects of our joint ecosystem to enable the validation and scaling of innovative products, business models, solutions, and offerings.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Investment Management and Performance Monitoring

• Drive an impact investing strategy that aligns with the organization’s mission, goals, and financial objectives.
• Manage and monitor the investment portfolio (including exit planning) by tracking performance and other KPIs and leveraging data-driven insights to optimize investment outcomes.
• Create written quarterly reports for the Board summarizing progress, insights, and performance of the investment portfolio.
• Create investment recommendation memos and related supporting documentation for proposed new and follow-on investments for BOD and other governance committees.
• Provide strategic guidance to the portfolio companies, offering advice on business strategies, financial planning, operational improvements, and growth opportunities.

Investment Sourcing

• Lead investment sourcing, evaluation, and execution of potential investments aligned with the organization's mission and investment criteria.
• Identify new and follow-on investment opportunities and negotiate terms for optimal financial returns and impact.
• Actively engage with SMILE Accelerator as a pipeline source and contribute to shaping the startup selection guidelines and criteria.
• Continuously develop our investment and industry network for sourcing new investment opportunities and potential co-investments.

Due Diligence

• Conduct rigorous due diligence on potential new and follow-on investments, including financial analysis, market research, risk management, legal review, and evaluation of mission alignment.
• Engage internal leaders, external partners, and external support as appropriate.

Investor & Other Innovation Partnerships

• Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with a diverse range of external partners, including investors, venture capital firms, and capital partners. Identify and leverage opportunities that drive collective, synergistic impact.
• Develop partnerships for the broader Innovation Partners agenda, including sponsors/partners for the SMILE Health accelerator program and provider/payer partners for real-world pilot programs.
• Represent CareQuest Innovation Partners as a thought leader at industry events, conferences, and networking forums to expand our investor network/community.

Business Development

• Lead business development to support strategic opportunities that drive toward strategic alignment and partnership/collaboration agreement execution.
• Ensure sound business development practices and oversight, including assessing goals, objectives, KPIs, value proposition, roles and responsibilities, and ROI analysis.

REQUIRED SKILLS & QUALIFICATIONS:

• 10+ years’ experience in venture capital/investment management, including experience evaluating and vetting investment opportunities, structuring investments, developing and managing an investment portfolio, and stewarding investments over time.
• Experience working with start-ups in an investment and/or operations capacity.
• Experience in healthcare (medical and/or oral) with a solid understanding of the dynamics of the healthcare system, the economics of healthcare innovation, and the practicalities of healthcare partnerships.
• Advanced financial certification (e.g., MBA, CFA, CPA) or equivalent real-world experience in investment finance.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively engage and manage partnerships and stakeholders, fostering collaboration and maximizing opportunities for strategic partnerships and investments.
• Experience working on a small team with a highly collaborative, “all hands on deck” approach.
• Passion for improving healthcare through innovation.

The specific statements shown in each section of this description are not intended to be all-inclusive. They represent typical elements and criteria necessary to successfully perform this position.

** In accordance with CareQuest Institute for Oral Health’s Compliance Plan, all employees must conduct CareQuest Institute for Oral Health business and activities in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, professional standards and ethical standards and report potential compliance or ethical issues to CareQuest Institute for Oral Health’s designated Compliance Officer. **

CareQuest Institute for Oral Health’s Affirmative Action Program affirms our commitment to make reasonable accommodation for known physical or mental limitation of otherwise-qualified individuals with disabilities or special disabled veterans, unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business and activities. Please see Human Resources for additional information regarding this program.